TMJ/Jaw Pain Free and Feeling Good

So I have been feeling great with the orthotic and all the stabbing pain in my ear is officially gone. I hardly ever experience jaw pain, and when I do it's usually when I have to take my orthotic out and chew without it. If the orthotic is out of my mouth for a while, I can begin to feel my muscles spasm.
One thing that has been bothering me is that the orthotic is tight on my front teeth, which hurts more sometimes than others. I think this was because when the dentist first took my molds, the mold was kind of pressing against my front teeth and I didn't really say anything at the time, but I wish I did. Still, it's only a minor discomfort and really overall, I'm most glad to be done with the jaw, neck, shoulder, and TMJ pain.
Most noticeably, is how I feel when I wake up in the morning. Normally I would have to open my jaw and unclench it like it had been in a vice the entire night. It was so painful. Now when I wake up I have no stiffness in my face or jaw muscles. It's amazing!
I think by the end of the treatment and once I actually have my teeth in place, I probably won't even have the clicking in my jaw any more. I'll hold off before getting my hopes up, and honestly I feel like a new person without all the face and neck pain. It's incredible.
I will have a follow up visit in March, and I think by then I'll be at the end of my treatment and decide how I want to continue with the final stages: re-positioning my teeth. That might involve braces, caps, or invisalign, but I'm not sure.
The whole first stage of the orthotic, tensing, and follow up visits cost $3,800. Plus, good news! My health insurance is covering it. BUT be aware...I have a $3,000 deductible to meet...so I'm not going to be getting the majority of this money back unfortunately. At this point though, I'll take anything!
Now having been at the end of the Neuromuscular treatment, I have to say that I am so glad I went through with it. I don't have any regrets. It was a conservative approach, but it has relieved probably all of the major pain I was experiencing. If I can maintain this relaxed position, I will move forward with the braces and never look back. I think before I actually move my teeth, I'll follow up with some photos of me and what my jaw looks like without the orthotic and with. It's very subtle, but it makes a huge difference even aesthetically. I was always self-conscious about how my jaw appeared slightly more set back than normal, and now, without surgery, it is postitioned much better and sitting forward. I still have a cant to my jaw, which probably isn't noticeable to most people, but I'm okay with that. Also, I think moving my jaw forward has made it even more unnoticeable. So I'm happy in that aspect too.
I'll be looking forward to my follow-up visit in March. (only a month away!) I am ready to be done with wearing this constantly in my mouth and also I would like to know how much the rest of the treatment will cost so I can start planning for that too. My job just switched to the Delta Dental plan, which I think might offer up more money for this sort of thing, but we'll see how it goes. Until next time!